Gardening
Gardening posts
Plant a lasagna bulb pot for fantastic spring colour
You may or may not have heard of a lasagna bulb pot but I assure you that they are fantastic. For a little bit of work in the autumn (fall) you can guarantee weeks and weeks of spring colour in your garden / porch /patio/ etc. The idea is that you plant your various types of bulbs in layers (kind of like a lasagna) so that your pot will have a succession of bright flowers throughout spring. So easy but incredibly effective! This year I am also doing it with an old wheelbarrow so a little bit of upcycling too. There are no rules about what you can use as…
Best Fruit Jelly/Jam Recipe Ever!
So, you have all that fruit either from your garden or the hedgerows. Now what do you do with it all? Well this fruit jam (fruit jelly) is gorgeous and so easy to make. No complicated quantities to remember and no specialist equipment needed. Just use your normal kitchen equipment. Then you can sit back and enjoy your fruit all year round. Toast and jam (jelly)! Obviously I am English and I call it jam but I do appreciate that many countries call it jelly so I will try and use both terms! This page contains affiliate links meaning I earn a…
Free Shrubs from Cuttings!
Everyone likes something for free and I am definitely no exception. Free shrubs are a great way of saving money and developing your garden. I love growing things in the garden from seed or from cuttings. If you are interested in growing from seed then take a look at my posts ‘Successful Seed Sowing‘ and ‘Transplanting Seedlings‘. Cuttings are great because you can replicate a shrub around your plot or even better, get free shrubs from a friend’s shrub. Next time you are admiring a shrub ask for a cutting or two and take the following steps. Most gardener’s love sharing their garden in this way. Obviously it is also…
How to Make a Mosaic Table
Last year I broke a glass topped table and I upcycled it using decoupage. You can see that project here. That worked really well so this year I thought I would try upcycling the same table again using mosaic tiles. It worked really well and looks really professional as you can see here. So, read on, be inspired and have a go yourself. It is great for that cup of tea (or something stronger) in the garden. This page contains affiliate links meaning I earn a small commission if you use those links at no cost to you. I only recommend brands I use and trust. You Will Need: Table frame…
Top 10 Garden Tasks for April
April is a really busy time in the garden. Despite the massive variety of weather that we can get in April all the plants really spring into life and require some attention. I think that it is an exciting time in the garden as all the greens are fantastically bright and there is so much promise of what is to come. So here are my top 10 garden tasks for April. This page contains affiliate links meaning I earn a commission if you use those links at no cost to you. I only recommend brands I use and trust. 1: Lawn Maintenance No matter how big or small your lawn (assuming…
How to grow a Lavender Hedge for £1
Yes, you read that correctly. A whole lavender hedge for £1. In this post I will show you exactly how I did it, not once but twice (we moved house)! I love lavender plants in the garden and I adore harvesting the lavender and making lavender gifts for friends and family. Lavender not only smells nice but it helps you to sleep and keeps moths away from your clothes. You Will Need: Lavender seeds Propagator and Seed Trays Compost This may look like a lot of expense but most gardeners have all these items and will just need to buy some seed (I paid £1). I used Munstead as I wanted…
Garden Tasks for March
There are many garden tasks for March but it all depends on the weather. These are my top 10 tasks that I will be trying to get done. It is that time of year where you could be getting lovely, sunny, warm days or you could be under a blanket of snow. So, many of the tasks I recommend are weather dependent. Make a judgement based on your garden and weather conditions. There is certainly plenty to be doing! This page contains affiliate links meaning I earn a little commission if you use those links at no cost to you. I only recommend brands I use and trust. 1: Mulch Mulching…
Make your own leaf mould
What could be better for your garden and the environment than making your own leaf mould? In the autumn (fall) simply gather up your fallen leaves and help them to form leaf mould. It is so easy and you can use it as a mulch or soil improver the following year. Here is a quick step by step guide to being successful with leaf mould. Step 1: Gather up your fallen leaves and put them somewhere that you can mow them. Step 2: Set your lawn mower to a high cut. As you can see, I use the highest setting that my mower has. Step 3: Mow the leaves so…
Seedlings – how to transplant
I love growing plants from seed. It is so economical and you really feel connected to your plants. Growing your own plants from seed is so satisfying. If you have never done it I really recommend it. You do not need any fancy equipment to try, just some warmth and light ( a windowsill works really well) Once you have sown your seeds, kept them warm and watered them you need to move them on to the next stage in their development. You need to prick your seedlings out into their final planting place or a larger pot. This is not tricky but you can easily damage your seedlings. This…
Sweet Peas Success Secrets
Sweet peas are absolutely gorgeous flowers and the scent is exquisite. As a bonus, the more you cut them the more they flower. If you grow them in your garden you can have them as cut flowers in your house all summer. This can be from June until October. To maximise the number of flowers and to get flowers as early as possible you should sow your seeds in autumn (October to November). Here I will run through the best way to sow your sweet pea seeds for success. This page contains affiliate links meaning I earn a commission if you use those links at no cost to you.…